This luxurious and very comfortable and spacious and is sailing Myanmar's Mergui Archipelago.

Meltemi is easy to sail, all winches are electric and can be fully controlled from the large flybridge. She's a great yacht for groups of friends or families and there is lots of space to play or lounge. When under sail, most guests just love to lie in the nets at the bow with the water splashing below.

This luxurious and very comfortable villa in located near Valbonne - Cote d'Azur - offering complete privacy. It is suitable for a six persons stay and is fitted with a private swimming pool. The view from the 4 terraces, the swimming pool and the garden is uninterrupted and stunning. It offers a beautiful view over a wide area with in the distance the pre-Alpes and the Haute Provence.

The villa is ideally located nearby the village Valbonne, Biot, Grasse, Mougins Juan Le Pins and just 13 kilometres from Cannes, Antibes and 30 kilometres from Nice and Nice airport.

The Resort is located on the sandy shores of Koh Samui. The 70 villas are situated at the end of the beach among tropical trees, far away from the village to provide privacy, yet close enough to give easy access to the dining and entertainment options. Each villa offers views of the beach and sea.

"We are very pleased to be able to join this exclusive collection of fabulous hotels worldwide. We are confident is will benefit our hotel greatly."

Sam Jones, Owner/Operator

The beachfront restaurant and bar serves breakfast and finishes with a spectacular sunset dinner. Recreational activities include a swimming pool with a Jacuzzi, sea canoeing, scuba diving, and Thai massages.

The full year results for 2015 are in and one thing is clear: the age-defining shift from desktop to mobile and tablet devices continued its rigorous pace: more than 20% of online bookings and roomnights are generated from non-desktop devices (smartphones + tablets), while nearly 50% of web visitors and over 44% of page views come from tablets and mobile devices.

According to Google Research, nine out of ten people are "cross-device" Internet browsers and researchers, using multiple devices sequentially (moving from one device to another at different times).

Smartphones are by far the most common starting point for sequential activity: 65% of users start their research on a smartphone and 60% continue on a desktop device. As an example, 55% of users use multiple screens sequentially when researching pricing information in travel.

Hoteliers, if you haven't invested in and taken advantage of this rapidly developing multi-channel, multi-device world, this should be your top priority in 2016. Mobile should never be an afterthought; it should be part of your overall strategy.

As someone who has been working in the hotel industry for more than 13 years, I still find it shocking to discuss independent properties' pricing strategies with revenue managers.

Phocuswright and h2c's Independent Lodging Market: Marketing, Distribution and Technology Strategies for Non-Branded Properties, shows that in 2015 "OTAs will represent 58% of US independent properties' online volume this year, compared to a 48% share for chains".

European independent properties have an even greater reliance on third-party channels: the OTAs "will represent 74% of European independent lodging online bookings in 2015".

Although many hoteliers may believe otherwise, independent properties often have a big advantage over branded properties in driving business to the direct channel, as it applies to revenue management strategy.

Independent properties have a smaller staff and, typically, can be more nimble to adapt to market changes and update revenue management strategies and rates accordingly.

Why should the direct channel be the primary booking channel for independent properties (vs. the OTAs)?